11. DSM/SCID/CIDI- Adults

Question 1

What is psychopathology?

Answer 1

Characteristics that differ from the dominant cultures definition of normality and vary over time and with culture

Question 2

What is a mental disorder?

Answer 2

A syndrome characterised by clinically significant disturbance to functioning associated with significant distress

Question 3

Why diagnose?

Answer 3

Guide treatment
identify prevalence rates
Basic research

Question 4

What is the core limitation of diagnosing

Answer 4

Relatively low reliability

Question 5

What is a differential diagnosis?

Answer 5

Symptoms may represent/indicate more than one disorder. Need assessment to work out which one.

Question 6

What is a limitation of the DSM-IV

Answer 6

the boundaries between disorder categories are fluid over the life course. Many symptoms assigned solely to one disorder can occur at varying levels in other disorders - the DSM-IV did not recognise or account for this.

Question 7

Describe the DSM structure

Answer 7

Section II: official criteria and disorder. Organised by chapters roughly according to developmental life span

Section III: Condition for further study - need evidence to support wide spread clinical use (highlights evolution of advances to stimulate further research)

Question 8

What are the limitations of structured and unstructured clinicial interviews?

Answer 8

• Poor for secondary diagnoses and specific primary diagnoses (good for main type of primary)
• anxiety and depression often mixed in with other mental disorders - does not pick up on this
• often missed substance use and particular cannabis use
• Too time consuming
• Strictly prescribed sequence of questions - interrupts therapeutic alliance

Question 9

What is better structured or unstructured interviews?

Answer 9

Depends on the presentation. For more severe presentations such as Schitz or bipolar structured is better. Structured better more primary - unstructured better for secondary diagnoses.